2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil

FIFA’s Road To The World Cup Starts In April

Releasing a separate version of FIFA centered around just the World Cup is nothing new for EA Sports, but developer EA Canada has added a few tweaks to the formula for 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil that may be worth a look for FIFA fans.

The game not only lets you take a country through the qualification process (you can also do this by taking control of a single player on the squad), but also features some gameplay improvements and changes from FIFA 14. Both passing and dribbling are being refined from last year's title to allow for more control and more precise animations and movement, and new flicks and "Brazilian-inspired" skill moves are also being added.

In response to one specific complaint of FIFA 14, players' acceleration on and off the ball is being reworked. Some players complained that players' first touch in FIFA 14 was too slow and cumbersome.

Another added gameplay feature is set piece tactics that tells your teammates to make runs during corners (near post, far post, edge of box, and crowd the keeper). Similar to the last EA World Cup game, penalty kicks are also being revamped from the core title – including better keeper AI and the ability for keepers to try and throw off kick takers on the spot.

Taking your favorite country through the long road of qualifying requires a hearty roster, and you can boost your players' skill individually with a training feature that lets you boost six attributes via 18 drills.

If you choose to play online, you can do so by playing through the group stage and finals, or progress through the Seasons-like Road to Rio mode by playing online opponents in the stadiums of Brazil's 12 host cities. The game also features scenarios based on key real-life moments of qualifying and (later on) the finals themselves.

These modes and gameplay additions are wrapped in new presentation that includes cutscenes of fandemonium from fans from countries around the world, and a radio show featuring Michael Davies and Roger Bennett of blog/podcast Men in Blazers or Andy Goldstein and Ian Darke.

2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil hits the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on April 15. There are no plans for any current-gen (PS4/Xbox One) versions of the game.

Train your players to keep them sharp during qualifying and when it counts during the Cup